View how portion sizes have changed over the years and what you can do to prevent portion distortion.

1. Prevent Portion
Distortion If you downsize your portion size
Know how. Know now.
and feel a smaller portion looks too
Alice Henneman, MS, RD small … serve it on a smaller plate so it
Amy Peterson, MS, RD looks larger. Note the difference in the
UNL Extension Educators appearance of one cup of cereal when a
ahenneman1@unl.edu • apeterson3@unl.edu smaller bowl is used.
Using a smaller plate or bowl
Portion sizes have gotten bigger over also can help you eat less according to
the past 20 years, and so have we! Larger research by professors Brian Wansink
portions add up. Just 100 extra calories and Koert van Ittersum. Larger plates 16 percent more cereal than those given
per day can lead to a weight gain of 10 can make a serving of food appear smaller bowls. Their estimates of their
pounds per year. Maintaining a healthy smaller. For example, in a study cereal consumption, however, were 7
weight is a balancing act … balance conducted at a health and fitness camp, percent lower than the estimates of those
calories in with calories out. campers given larger bowls consumed eating from the smaller bowls.
20 YEARS AGO TODAY
Portion Distortion
DIFFERENCE 20 YEARS AGO TODAY DIFFERENCE
Renee Comet, National
257
Cancer Institute
renee_mcgurk,
www.flickr.com
MORE 305
Adapted from “Portion Distortion” by the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute at http://hin.nhlbi.nih.gov/portion
CALORIES
333 Calories 590 Calories
MORE
Coffee, 8 oz (with whole Mocha Coffee, 16 oz (with steamed
milk and sugar) whole milk and mocha syrup)
Lifting weights for 1 HOUR AND 30 MINUTES burns
approximately 257 calories* *Based on 130-pound person 45 Calories 350 Calories CALORIES
Walking 1 HOUR AND 20 MINUTES burns approximately
305 calories* *Based on 130-pound person
350
MORE 290
500 Calories 850 Calories CALORIES
Playing golf (while walking and carrying your clubs) for 1 HOUR
burns approximately 350 calories* *Based on 160-pound person
1.5 oz 4 oz MORE
210 Calories 500 Calories CALORIES
Vacuuming for 1 HOUR AND 30 MINUTES burns
approximately 290 calories* *Based on 130-pound person
Renee Comet, National
Cancer Institute
525 220
MORE MORE
1 cup spaghetti with sauce 2 cups spaghetti with sauce
and 3 small meatballs and 3 large meatballs 1.5 diameter 3.5 diameter
500 Calories 1,025 Calories CALORIES 55 Calories 275 Calories CALORIES
Housecleaning for 2 HOURS AND 35 MINUTES burns Washing a car for 1 HOUR AND 15 MINUTES burns
approximately 525 calories* *Based on 130-pound person approximately 220 calories* *Based on 130-pound person
Extension is a Division of the Institute of Agriculture and Natural Resources at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln
cooperating with the Counties and the United States Department of Agriculture.
®
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and the United States Department of Agriculture.

2. MyPlate Helps You Choose Keep an Eye on
Your Portion Sizes
Types and Amounts of Foods Here are some ways to “eyeball”
food portion amounts:
The following foods and amounts
are for a 2,000 calorie daily food pattern
for ages 19 and over. Your calorie needs
may be more or less; adjust the amount
you are eating accordingly. For a more
1 cup =
personalized plan for YOUR calorie level,
based on your age, gender, height/weight,
and activity level — and for ages 2 through
18 — visit http://choosemyplate.gov.
GRAINS: ½ cup =
Eat 6 “ounce-equivalents.”
tip of a thumb
Make at least half your grains 1 teaspoon = to the first joint
whole grains.
Ounce-equivalents: • 1 slice bread 1 tablespoon = 3 thumb tips
• 1 cup ready-to-eat cereal (such as flakes)
• ½ cup cooked pasta, cooked rice, or cooked cereal
FRUITS: Eat 2 cups of fresh, canned, or frozen fruits.
•n general, 1 cup of fruit or 100% fruit juice, or 1/2 cup of dried fruit can be considered as
I
1 cup from the Fruit Group
• ake most of your choices whole or cut-up fruit rather than juice, for the benefits dietary
M
fiber provides 1½ ounces of cheese =
4 stacked dice
VEGETABLES: Eat 2½ cups of fresh, frozen, canned
vegetables, or an equivalent amount of dried/dehydrated
vegetables.
• Note: 2 cups raw leafy greens = 1 cup of vegetable
3 ounces cooked meat, or
DAIRY: Consume 3 cups of fat-free or low-fat milk (1%) poultry = a deck of cards
or equivalent Dairy Group foods.
1-cup equivalents: • 8 oz milk
• 1 cup yogurt
• 1½ oz natural cheese
• 2 oz processed cheese
• 8 oz calcium-fortified soy beverages
PROTEIN FOODS: Eat 5½ oz (or equivalent) of lean 3 ounces grilled/baked fish
meat, poultry, or fish. = checkbook
1-ounce equivalents: • 1 oz meat, poultry, or fish
• ¼ cup cooked beans or peas (does not include green beans and peas)
• 1 egg
• 1 tablespoon peanut butter or almond butter
• ½ oz of nuts or seeds
• ¼ cup (about 2 oz) of tofu
• ¼ cup roasted soybeans
REFERENCES:
• Choose MyPlate at http://ChooseMyPlate.gov • ethink Your Drink, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention at
R
• ietary Guidelines for Americans, 2010 at
D www.cdc.gov/healthyweight/healthy_eating/drinks.html
www.cnpp.usda.gov/DGAS2010-PolicyDocument.htm • elected Messages for Consumers, USDA Center for Nutrition Policy and Promotion
S
• eep an Eye on Portion Size Serving Size card, Dept. of Health Human Services,
K at www.choosemyplate.gov/print-materials-ordering/selected-messages.html
National Institutes of Health, and National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute at • ansink, Brian and Koert van Ittersum (2006), “The Visual Illusions of Food: Why
W
http://hp2010.nhlbihin.net/portion/servingcard7.pdf Plates, Bowls and Spoons Can Bias Consumption Volume,” FASEB Journal, 20:4
• ortion Distortion Quiz, Dept. of Health Human Services, National Institutes of
P (Mar 6) A618-A618, Part 1
Health, and National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute at
http://hp2010.nhlbihin.net/portion
For more information about healthy eating, visit http://food.unl.edu
This is a peer reviewed publication